Last updated February 2026 | Words and photos by Vietnam Coracle | Read time 15 minutes | 69 comments

Tom Divers is the founder and creator of Vietnam Coracle. In 2005 he moved from his native London to Vietnam, where he has been living, working and travelling ever since. He pays rent in Ho Chi Minh City but is more often on the road, riding his motorbike a quarter of a million kilometres across Vietnam to research guides to the farthest-flung corners of the nation. When he’s not in the saddle, you’ll find him on a beach with a margarita, in a tent on a mountainside or at a streetside noodle house: in other words, at the ‘office’. Read more about Tom: Q&A, About Page, Vietnam Tourism website.

By Rail from the City to the Beach with your Motorbike or Bicycle On Board

Taking the train between Sài Gòn (Hồ Chí Minh City) and Phan Thiết is one of the easiest and most convenient rail journeys in Vietnam. Linking Vietnam’s biggest city and one of its most popular beach retreats (Phan Thiết is gateway to the sands of Mũi Né), this rail route takes passengers and their motorbikes or bicycles on the same train – one of only a few routes in Vietnam that allows this. These days, there are many ways to travel between Sài Gòn and Phan Thiết: by bus or car on the new CT01 expressway (2-3 hours), by motorbike or bicycle on the scenic Ocean Road (4-6 hours), and possibly in the near future by plane, if/when the new Phan Thiết Airport is completed. But taking the train is by far the best option if, like me, you enjoy a good rail journey and if, like me, you want to take your motorbike or bicycle with you, but you don’t want to spend 1-2 hours riding out of the horrible industrial suburbs on traffic-choked roads. For passengers, taking the train is an enjoyable travel experience, and for riders it’s a chance to let the rails carry your wheels. The Sài Gòn–Phan Thiết train is relatively cheap, easy, fun and efficient: a great way to connect the city and the beach.❤️If you enjoy my work, please support this website with a donation or join my Patreon community or purchase an Offline Guide & Map – I run this website at a consistent loss. Thank you, Tom

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THE GUIDE:

How to Take the Sài Gòn–Phan Thiết Train, for Passengers & Motorbikes

Below is my complete guide to taking the Sài Gòn–Phan Thiết train, including a route map, information about taking motorbikes/bicycles, schedules, contacts and prices – you can even book your tickets directly from this page. Note that this is one of the few rail routes in Vietnam that allows passengers to travel on the same train as their motorbike (another notable route being the Hà Nội–Hải Phòng Express). Click from the contents below for details. (For more guides like this, see Related Posts.❤️If you enjoy Vietnam Coracle, please support it with a donation or join my Patreon community or purchase an Offline Guide & Map)

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Contents:

🗺️ Route Map

💰 Tickets, Prices & Train Schedule

🛵 Taking a Motorbike or Bicycle

🚆 Departure & Arrival Stations

🚂 The Trains

🚄 The Journey

📜 Related Posts

❤️If you like this guide, please support Vietnam Coracle with a donation or become a member of my Patreon community or purchase an Offline Guide & Map. This website relies on reader support to maintain its independence & quality. Thank you, Tom

MAP:

Sài Gon→Phan Thiết Train Route

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Tickets, Prices & Train Schedule

Booking Tickets: The quickest, easiest and most user-friendly way to book passenger tickets for the the Sài Gòn–Phan Thiết train is online via this Baolau.com link or use the search box below. This is how I always book my own train tickets in Vietnam. Alternatively, Vietnam Railways has a decent English-language version of their website (www.dsvr.vn) where you can find up-to-date schedules and book tickets online. Or you can book in-person directly at the ticket offices at either Sài Gòn station or Phan Thiết station (see Stations for details). If travelling on a weekend or public holiday, it’s advisable to book tickets at least a couple of days in advance, as trains can be busy at these times. During the week, you should be able to get a ticket on the day of departure, although it’s still best to book in advance to avoid disappointment. (Note that tickets for motorbikes or bicycles must be purchased in-person at the station – see Taking a Motorbike for details.)

Book your Tickets: enter your departure and arrival stations, select your dates of travel and click ‘Search’👇

Ticket Prices: Although ticket prices vary a little depending on where, from whom, and which method you use to book them, the discrepancies are fairly minimal. The pricelist below takes into account the fluctuating prices and is accurate at the time of writing (February 2026). You can easily check current ticket prices and make bookings online at Baolau.com or the Vietnam Railways website: www.dsvr.vn. The cheapest soft seat class is perfectly comfortable for a relatively short journey such as this. Soft seat premium (or VIP) is a little more comfortable, spacious (and cold!) than normal soft seat class. The sleeper 4-berth class is not really necessary on this rail journey, unless you want to take a nap or have some privacy if travelling in a small group.

Schedule: For most of the year (if not all of the year), there is one direct service in each direction every day. Although departure and arrival times are subject to minor changes, the general schedule has been the same for years. Journey time is approximately 4-5 hours. However, since the end of the Covid pandemic, there has tended to be a period of several months (usually the low season, between August to October) when the schedule has been reduced to just Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Presumably, this is due to low passenger numbers during those months, or perhaps it’s because fewer people are travelling by train since the new CT01 Expressway opened. Either way, if you’re planning to take the Sài Gòn–Phan Thiết train at that time of year, it’s important to check the schedule online first, either on Baolau.com or the Vietnam Railways website: www.dsvr.vn.

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Train Schedule:

*In the low season months (August-October), trains may only depart Fri-Sun

Ticket Prices:

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Taking a Motorbike

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Unlike almost every other train route in Vietnam (read more about that here), when you send your motorbike on the Sài Gòn–Phan Thiết service, passengers and their motorbikes travel on the same train. This is incredibly convenient for riders and it’s a much simpler process than sending your motorbike between other stations on the main north–south line. (A notable exception to this is the Hà Nội–Hải Phòng train service.)

The only drawback is that, for most foreign travellers, you can’t buy your motorbike ticket online, like you can for your passenger ticket. (Technically, you can book your motorbike ticket over the phone – 1900 1520 – but this requires a decent level of Vietnamese language ability or a Vietnamese person to do it on your behalf.) Therefore, for most foreign travellers, you will need to book your motorbike ticket directly at Sài Gòn or Phan Thiết train station. This should be done one or two days prior to departure (or more if possible) because spots for motorbikes are limited. However, you can take your chances and do it on the day of travel instead.

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To book your motorbike ticket, go to the main ticket office in Sài Gòn or Phan Thiết train stations with your passport and your motorbike license plate number to hand. If booking in advance, make sure you clearly state the day of travel and always check the details on your ticket before you leave the station. This should be a fairly simple and painless process for most travellers, although in Sài Gòn station it may require a bit of queuing and patience. Prices can vary depending on the motorbike model, but in general the motorbike ticket costs roughly the same as the passenger ticket: Anywhere between 170,000vnđ to 350,000vnđ ($7-$14) per motorbike. (Bicycles are cheaper.)

Passengers with motorbikes are required to be at the station 30-40 minutes before departure. In order to put your motorbike on the train, you must drive through the station gates and onto the platform. At Sài Gòn station, the entrance is to the east side of the main station building: look for the blue sign with white lettering saying CỔNG ĐÓN HÀNH KHÁCH CÓ XE MÁY ĐI TÀU PHAN THIẾT. At Phan Thiết station, the entrance is to the left (west side) of the station building. Ride your motorbike along the platform (which is great fun, although station staff are starting to clamp down on this practice) to the back end of the train. Here you’ll find a few other motorbikes waiting to be loaded onto the freight car. Show your ticket to the handling staff and they will give you a paper receipt for your motorbike: do not lose this. After leaving your motorbike with the staff, make your way to the passenger carriages and find your seat on the train. When you arrive at your destination, stroll along the platform to the freight car, show your receipt, and drive off.

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Departure & Arrival Stations:

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The Sài Gòn–Phan Thiết train is an express service: there are only a few station stops between the departure and destination terminals. These include: Dĩ An, Biên Hòa, Long Khánh, Suối Kiết and Bình Thuận. Passengers can potentially get on/off at these stations, but most people take the train all the way between the start/end stations of Sài Gòn and Phan Thiết. These two stations could hardly be more different: the former is the busy terminus for all southbound trains in Vietnam; whereas the latter is a quiet, almost rural, station at the end of a short spur line. See below for details:

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Sài Gòn Train Station (Ga Sài Gòn) [MAP]

In the cramped, busy back streets of District 3, Sài Gòn Station is a dull-looking terminus (although the old steam locomotive at the entrance is impressive), but it functions well enough. Passengers can enter the station building via the main northern entrance or the side entrance to the east. Once inside, show your ticket at the boarding gate near the escalators in the waiting hall. Head out to the platforms and board the train – but make sure you’re on the correct platform number! (See above for boarding with a motorbike.) There are several cafes, shops and fast food outlets, and a ticket office, information desk and ATMs inside the station building. A steady flow of taxis wait outside the front entrance or simply use a ride-hailing app, such as Grab or Xanh SM.

Phan Thiết Station (Ga Phan Thiết) [MAP]

A couple of kilometres northwest of the city centre, Phan Thiết Station has a pleasantly provincial feel to it. It’s usually very calm and easy to navigate. Enter the main station doors, walk through to the gate, show your ticket and continue out to the platform. (See above for boarding with a motorbike.) There’s generally only one train in the station, so there’s no chance of boarding the wrong one. Some light snacks are available from the one and only shop. Taxis meet the trains when they arrive or use a ride-hailing app instead.

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The Trains:

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Over the last few years, most of the carriages on the Sài Gòn–Phan Thiết train have been upgraded or refurbished (inside and outside) to the extent that they appear fairly new. However, this is not the case with the dining car (still a row of stained wooden benches resembling the interior of a Conestoga wagon) and the lower tier soft-seat class, which is usually the first carriage of the train (behind the locomotive) or the last carriage of the train (before the dining car). All carriages are air-conditioned – in fact, it’s a good idea to bring a sweater to keep warm – and all seats and sleeping berths are soft and comfy (chairs have reclinable backs). There are perfectly adequate toilets and wash basins in every carriage, and the general standard of cleanliness is pretty good.

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An endearing tradition on Vietnamese trains is piping hot fresh food, which rolls down the aisle on a trolley a couples of times during the journey. This may include: steaming pots of hot sweet corn, warm, crispy baguettes filled with paté, freshly boiled chicken eggs served with salt and pepper dip, or sliced green mango with chilli and salt dip. Wonderful! Can you imagine that on a European train?

The dining car, at the rear of the train, has an OK menu of Vietnamese noodles, stir-fries, pot soups, snacks and drinks, all of which are reasonably priced. Regardless of quality, there’s always something romantic about sitting in the dining carriage of a train, with a bite to eat, a coffee, a book, and watching the scenery pass by. However, the dining car is usually a bit grubby and is often used by the train staff as a smoking (and beer-drinking) carriage. Therefore, most passengers choose to take their refreshments back to their seats.

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The Journey:

After rolling out of Sài Gòn station, the train rattles through the city. The driver leans on the horn as the train passes through crowded local neighbourhoods, across busy intersections – the traffic piled up either side of the junction – over the Saigon River and out into the dusty suburbs. Life continues just metres from the tracks, offering a fascinating cross-section of the city: markets, cafes, offices, temples, homes, schools. I used to live in a house near the railway, and each time I heard the horn blowing and the carriages rattling, I longed to be on the train.

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Beyond the industrial city of Biên Hòa, the train makes its way east through a lush landscape of crop fields, fruit orchards and plantations: banana, coffee, jackfruit, cassava, cashew, mango, rubber, sugar cane, corn and rice all grow within a few feet of the train. Deeper into the journey, green hills begin to rise from the folds of the rolling fields. It’s tropical, exotic, exciting – everything a good rail journey should be.

The train only makes a few stops at stations along the way. The penultimate stop is at Bình Thuận station (also known as Mường Mán), after which the train takes a short spur line to Phan Thiết, the final stop. From here, it’s a 10-minute taxi ride into Phan Thiết city – an interesting coastal settlement with some great seafood – or a 20-minute drive to the resort-studded coast of Mũi Né, featuring some great places to stay. Or, if you have your motorbike with you, you can hit the scenic Coast Road or head straight up into the mountains of the Central Highlands.

❤️Like this guide? Support Vietnam Coracle with a donation or join my Patreon to help keep this website free & 100% independent. Thank you, Tom

Support My Work

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“Hello, if you enjoy my website, please support it.
Thank you.” Tom

Donate

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*Disclosure: I never receive payment for anything I write: my content is always free and independent. I’ve written this guide because I want to: I like this train route and I want my readers to know about it. For more details, see my Disclosure & Disclaimer statements and my About Page

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